Selector attachment for addressing machines



July 29, 1958 H. J. SHINKLE SELECTOR ATTACHMENT FOR ADDRESSING MACHINESFiled June 25, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. HUG/7' 1/ 5 Z BYLVMQMJuly '29, 1958 I H. J. SHINKLE SELECTOR ATTACHMENT FOR ADDRESSINGMACHINES Filed Jim 25, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 R m m w.

July 29, 1958 H. J. SHINKLE SELECTOR ATTACHMENT FOR ADDRESSING MACHINESFiled June 25, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVEN TOR. #0619 1/ S/l/AAZf July29,1958 H. J. SHINKLE 2,845,268

SELECTOR ATTACHMENT FOR ADDRESSING MACHINES Filed June 25, 1956 4Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR. HUG/l d 5 //V/(Z BY w.

SELECTOR ATTACHMENT FOR ADDRESSIN MACHEIES Hugh J. Shinlrle, Aurora,(3010., assignor to United States g f America as represented by theSecretary of the Air orce . Application June 25, 1956, Serial No.593,776

. 4 Claims. (Cl. 271--64) (Granted under Title 35, U. S. Code (1952),sec. 266) chines of any of the usual forms employed for addressingcards, such as pay cards, for sequentially selecting a card inaccordance with a predetermined cycle of operation from a number ofejected cards for purposes of audit.

The selector attachment of the present invention is arranged to operateso as to select every tenth card ejected by the addressing machine andto separate the selected tenth card from the rest of the ejected cards.Also, the order of card selection is arranged to be controlled by theoperator by presetting the card selector to begin operation with anyejected card between the first and tenth ejected card, for example, suchas the 4th14th-24th etc., or the 7thl7th27th etc.

The present invention also provides a card selector attachment which maybe attached to an addressing machine without any substantialmodifications to the machines and at a minimum cost.

The present invention further provides a selector attachmentcharacterized by its simplicity of construction, employing material andparts readily available, and which is easy to operate.

According to the present invention, the card selector attachmentcomprises a selector device adapted to be driven by an addressingmachine, a card separator device operatively connected to the selectordevice and adapted to be attached to the addressing machine, theselector device arranged to sequentially operate the card separator inaccordance with a predetermined cycle of operation so as to selectivelyseparate a card from the rest of the cards ejected from the addressingmachine.

These and other features of the present invention are described indetail below in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein likenumerals designate like parts throughout the several views, in which:

Figure 1 is a view in perspective of a selector attach- 7 vice of Figure5;

Figure 7 is a top plan view of the selector switch device of Figure 5;and

Figure 8 is a wiring diagram for the selector attachment of Figure l.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the embodiment of the presentinvention illustrated therein comprises a casing 10 that may be set uponthe frame 12 of an addressing machine so as to stand at an inclinedposition as shown in Figure 1. The casing 10 is removably mounted on theframe 12 of an addressing machine by brace members 14 attached to sideplates 16 of the casing 10 and adapted to be secured to the frame 12 attheir lower ends. The casing 10 is further arranged to be supported atthe front end thereof on the frame 12 by front side plates 18 adapted tobe attached to the frame 12, as by-bolts or in any other suitablemanner. The front side plates 18 in turn support the side plates 16 ofthe casing 10 by a rod 20 extending therebetween and arranged to beengaged by slots 22 in extension members 24 attached to the side plates16 as shown in Figure 3. A nut 25 screwed on at each end of the rod 20prevents disengagement thereof.

Extending transversely of the casing 10 between the side plates 16, areflanged plates 26, 28 attached thereto and of which plates 26, 28, plate26 forms a front inclined surface while plate 28 forms an upperhorizontal surface in the casing 10. Over both plates 26, 28 slide fourconveyor bands 30 driven by rollers 32, motor 34 and a gearing system 36under a cover 37 as shown in Figure 2. Adjustment of the conveyor bands30 may be obtained by one of the rollers 32 being provided with bearings38 slidably extending through slots 40 in the side plates 16 and engagedby adjustable screws 42 as shown in Figure 3. The four conveyor bands 30are further separately held by passing over an flanged plate 44 attachedto the side plates 16, and which plate 44 is provided with four slots(not shown) through which pass the bands 30.

Above each conveyor band 30 there is resiliently suspended a metal strip46 provided with pins 48 and springs 50, which pins 48 guidedly extendthrough apertures 52 formed in rods 54 extending transversely above thecasing 10 and supported on the side plates 16 as shown in Figure 4. Bythis arrangement, the cards carried 'by the conveyor bands 30 slideunder the metal strips 46 and are delivered to a pan or receptacle 56mounted at the rear side of the casing 10 by a set of pins 58 engagingnotches 60 formed at the ends of the side plates 16 as shown in Figure3. A latch 62 on each plate 16 prevents disengagement of each lower pin58 and therefore of the pan 56.

The casing 10 is further provided with a card pick-up device 64consisting of a fork member 66 having a plurality of fingers 67andmounted on the front side plates 18. The fork member 66 is, further,biased to a raised position by a spring 68. Actuation of the fork member66 to a lower position for picking up and separating a card from theejected cards by the addressing machine is obtained by a pair ofsolenoids or elec'tromagnets 70 supported on the front side plates 18and arranged to attract contact arms 72 on the fork member 66 duringenergization of the solenoids 70 by current, thereby causing the forkmember 66 to rotate to the lower or extended position as shown inFigures 3 and 4.

Operation of the card pick-up device 64 is controlled by a selectorswitch device 74 mounted on' a bracket 76 arranged for attachment to theframe 12 of the addressing machine. The selector device 74 comprises acasing 78 having index numerals one to ten stamped on the face thereof.Inside the casing 78, a ratchet wheel 80 having a hub 82 is rotatablymounted on a stud 84 fixed to the casing 78. The ratchet wheel '80 isformed with 'tenteeth 86 for completing a revolution in ten steps. Theteeth 86 are engaged by a stop pin 90 pivoted on a screw 92 and beingurged against the teeth 86 by a spring 94 so as to permit rotation ofthe ratchet wheel 80 only in a clockwise direction. A nut 96 retains thescrew 92 in the casing 78.

Arranged for rotation by the ratchet wheel 80, a cam 98, provided with agroove 100, is mounted on the ratchet hub 82 and fastened thereto by aset screw 102. The cam 98 is also formed with a knob 104 provided withan indicator 106 on the face thereof and in alignment with the groove100. Rotation of the ratchet wheel 80, and, therefore, of the cam 98, isobtained by a spring loaded push rod 108 arranged to engage the ratchetteeth 86 and extending upwardly from a lever 110 pivoted at one end onsupports 112 and pivotally connected at the other end to the forked end114 of a lever 116. A spring 118 attached to the supports 112 urges thelever 110 downwardly as shown in Figure 5. The lever 116 is providedwith a washer 120 welded thereto, or attached thereto in any suitablemanner, which washer 120 is arranged to be engaged with the addressingmachine plate drive lever (not shown) for continuous reciprocationthereby during operation of the addressing machine.

The cam 98 is further arranged to control the actuation of a circuitcontroller 122, which circuit controller 122 is adapted to control theelectrical circuit for energizing the solenoids 70 of the pick-up device64 mentioned above. The circuit controller 122 consists of two contacts124, 126 on a block 128 arranged to be inserted in the upper part of thecasing 78 of the selector switch 74 as shown in Figures to 7. A pair ofplug jacks 130 on the block 128 are connected to the contacts 124, 126.By this arrangement, the contact 124 is kept raised above the contact126 by the cam 98 so that the circuit remains open. However, as soon asthe groove 100 on the cam 98 registers with the contact 124, the contact124 is lowered so as to engage the contact 126 and thereby to close thecircuit to energize the solenoids 70 for actuating the fork member 66.

Figure 8 illustrates a simple wiring diagram of the selector attachmentof the present invention. The solenoids 70 may be connected to an outlet132 by an electric plug 134, as shown in Figure 2, while the motor 34may be connected to an outlet 136 by a plug 138. The selector switch 74is connected to the solenoid outlet 132 and to the main line 140. Apanel switch 142 may be provided in the main line 140 for starting andstopping operation of the card selector.

In operation, the knob 104 may be first turned until the indicator 106is set opposite any number on the face of the casing 78 in accordancewith the order of card selection desired so that every tenth cardbeginning with the ejected card corresponding to the number on which theknob indicator 106 is set may be separated from the rest of the ejectedcards. Actuation of the ratchet wheel 80 by the addressing machinethrough levers 108, 110 and 116 will cause the cam 98 to rotate step bystep until the groove 100 reaches the circuit controller contact 124whereby the contact 124 is lowered to make contact with the contact 126and close the circuit. Closing the circuit, therefore, causes thesolenoids 70 to energize and thereby attract the arms 72 which rotatethe fork member 66 downwardly to divert a card while being ejected fromthe addressing machine. The conveyor bands 30 then carry the separatedcard to the receptacle 56. Metal strips 46, obviously, retain the cardon the conveyor bands 30 until the card reaches the pan 56 in which itis dropped. In the meantime, the cam 98 has been rotated causing thegroove 100 to advance so that the cam 98 again raises the contact 124above the contact 126 thereby opening the circuit and deenergizing thesolenoids 70. This action releases the fork member 66 which returns toits upper position by the action of the spring 68 and thereby allowsnine pay cards to pass beneath the fork member 66 and 7.1 into a tray ofthe addressing machine until the next tenth card is being ejected andthe cycle is again repeated.

The present invention has been described in detail above for purposes ofillustration only and is not intended to be limited by this descriptionor otherwise except as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A card selector for sequentially selecting a card from a number ofcards, comprising, in combination, a selector device attached to anaddressing machine frame and comprising a combined, rotatably mountedactuator and single groove cam, an electrical circuit controller hav inga pair of electrical contacts normally separated to circuit-openposition by said cam and moved to engaged, circuit-closed position onrotation of said cam to register said cam groove therewith, a cardseparating device mounted on said addressing machine frame and having arotatably mounted card pick-up device with a pair of spaced electricalcontact arms, electromagnetic means mounted on said addressing machineadjacent said spaced electrical contact arms and electrically connectedto said circuit controller to intermittently attract and rotate saidcard pick-up device to pick up a selected card on engagement betweensaid pair of electrical contacts, and actuating means operated by theaddressing machine and engaged with said actuator to continuously rotatesaid combined actuator and cam.

2. A card selector attachment device for an addressing machinecomprising a card separating device including a main casing having aconveyor system and a card pickup member, means attaching said cardseparating device to the main frame of an addressing machine, anadjustable selector device mounted on the addressing machine frame andhaving electrical circuit controller means intermittently operating saidcard pick-up member for selectively separating a card from a number ofcards ejected by the addressing machine and depositing said separatedcard on said conveyor system, cam means sequentially controlling theoperation of said circuit controller means, an actuator elementcontinuously driving said cam means, and actuating means driven oflf theaddressing machine driving said actuator element comprising an operatinglever attached to and driven otf the addressing machine, aninterconnecting lever attached to and continuously reciprocated by saidoperating lever and a driving member affixed to said interconnectinglever and in engagement with and driving said actuator, said attachingmeans comprising a pair of parallel, spaced connecting members attachedat one end to said main casing, a pair of parallel, spaced plate membersattached at one end to the addressing machine frame and elongatedinterconnecting means removably attaching said plate members to saidconnecting members at the other ends thereof.

3. A card selector attachment comprising a frame positioned on anaddressing machine, a conveyor band sys tem mounted on said frame, acard separating device comprising a forked element having a pair ofcontact arms normally in raised position mounted on one end of and inalignment with said conveyor system adjacent to the addressing machine,a card selector mechanism mounted on the addressing machine, electriccontrol means housed within said selector mechanism, operating meanssequentially controlling said electric control means betweencircuit-open and circuit-closed position comprising lever meansoperatively attached to and driven by the normal operation of theaddressing machine and cam means normally holding said electric controlmeans in open circuit position and periodically moving said electriccontrol means to closed circuit position, a pair of solenoids mounted onthe addressing machine adjacent said pair of contact arms electricallyinterconnected with said electric control means and energized to attractand rotate said pair of contact arms and said forked element to alowered position to separate a predetermined card from a number of cardsnormally ejected from the addressing machine and deposit the selectedcard on the conveyor band system, and an index means incorporated insaid selector mechanism for selectively controlling and setting theinitial position of said cam means, said card selector attachment havingmeans removably attaching said frame to the addressing machinecomprising a pair of rear end substantially upright braces attachedbetween the addressing machine and said frame and front end supportmeans comprising a pair of front side members attached to the addressingmachine at one end thereof and having a slotted end portion at the otherend thereof, a pair of relatively elongated extension members inalignment with said front side members and having a similar slotted endportion adjacent to and in overlapping alignment with said firstnamedslotted end portions, and a transversely disposed rod member extendingbetween said pairs of aligned slotted end portions in engagementtherewith.

4. In a card selector attachment for an addressing machine, anaddressing machine frame, a card-receiving casing having a pair ofspaced, parallel raised side plates, first support means attaching theforward end of said casing to said frame, second support means removablypositioning the rearward end of said casing in spaced relation over saidframe, said first support means comprising a pair of relativelyelongated, parallel, spaced extension members attached to said sideplates and extending in overlapping relation to the forward end of saidcasing each incorporating a downwardly extending open end slot, a pairof parallel, spaced front side plates, each having a similar slot inalignment with the downwardly extending slots of said extension membersand an elongated rod extending transversely of said side plates in fixedengagement between said pairs of aligned slots attaching said extensionmembers to said front side plates, :1 first plurality of spaced,parallel flanged plates extending transversely of said casing betweensaid side plates to form a front inclined surface, a second plurality ofspaced, parallel flanged plates extending transversely of said casingbetween said side plates rearwardly of and spaced from said firstplurality of flanged plates to form an upper, horizontal surface, aplurality of endless conveyor bands slidably received over saidplurality of flanged plates, a plurality of elongated rollers rotatablypositioned between said side plates to receive and drive said pluralityof endless conveyor bands and power means for driving said rollers andsaid conveyor bands, one of said rollers having bearing mount means oneach end thereof in slidable, adjustable engagement within said sideplates to adjust the tension on said conveyor bands, means for ensuringseparation between said conveyor bands comprising a separate flangedplate positioned between said side plates and incorporating a pluralityof slots each receiving a separate conveyor band, a card-receivingreceptacle mounted on the rear end of said casing, means directingselected cards received on said conveyor bands to said receptaclecomprising a resiliently suspended guide strip positioned over eachconveyor band in overlapping relation thereto, a card pick-up devicecomprising an elongated fork member mounted on said front side plates intransverse relation to said casing normally biased to a raisedcard-disengaged position and having a contact arm on each end thereof,means for actuating said fork member to a lower, card pick-up positioncomprising a pair of solenoids supported on said front side platesadjacent said contact arms and selectively energized to attract saidcontact arms and said fork member to a lower, card pick-up position, andmeans for selectively energizing said pair of solenoids comprising acard selector device mounted on the addressing machine frame, said cardselector device comprising a main housing indexed on the face thereof, aratchet wheel having a predetermined number of teeth-rotatablypositioned within said housing, a stop pivotally mounted in said housingin normal engagement with one of said teeth to permit rotation of saidratchet wheel in one direction only, a cam having a single groovemounted within said housing for rotation with said ratchet wheel,continuous operating means for rotating said ratchet Wheel and said camtogether comprising a washer engaged with and continuously reciprocatedby the addressing machine, a bifurcated operating lever attached at oneend to said washer, an interconnecting lever attached at one end to theother end of said bifurcated operating lever and pivotally supported onits other end and a spring-loaded push rod intermediately mounted on oneend to said interconnecting lever and engaged at its other end with theteeth of said ratchet wheel and card selecting means for selectivelyactuating said solenoids to select a card from a number of cards ejectedby the addressing machine comprising a pair of electrical springcontacts in circuit with said solenoids and normally held in disengaged,circuit-open position by said cam and periodically movable to engaged,circuit-closed position on register of said cam groove with one of saidcontacts to actuate said pair of solenoids and rotate said fork memberdownwardly to divert a card being ejected from the addressing machine.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,673,735 Niles et al. Mar. 30, 1954

